During the planning of a construction project, an employee is working on understanding the customer’s requirements for a new room. The employee wants to set reasonable expectations for how the new room will be assessed when it is finished, as well as prevent miscommunications.

Quality management is a broader concept that encompasses both quality assurance and quality control. While it focuses on overall quality within an organization, it does not specifically address the proactive measures needed to ensure customer requirements are met during a project. Therefore, it lacks the targeted approach required for setting expectations in this context.

Quality control refers to the operational techniques and activities used to fulfill requirements for quality. While it plays a significant role in verifying that the finished room meets established standards, it is more reactive—focusing on inspection and correction after the work is done—rather than on setting expectations or preventing miscommunications during the planning stages.

A quality audit is an independent evaluation of processes and outputs to determine compliance with quality standards. Although audits can help identify issues post-completion, they do not contribute to setting expectations or addressing customer requirements proactively during project planning. Thus, they are not suitable for the goal of managing customer expectations effectively.